If there is one artist that can truly live up to the title of being Made it is indeed South Park, Houston veteran Scarface. With a prolific twenty-year catalogue under his belt, the former Geto Boy sounds as crisp as ever on his eleventh solo project, despite stating that he is getting ready to hang up his microphone for good soon.
Never serves as both an anti-snitching anthem and a verbal display of 'Face’s veteran stripes, ranking up as one of his strongest tracks in years. Meanwhile, Burn, with fellow Texas heavy hitter Z-Ro on the hook, will rattle your speakers and grab your attention. His haunted thug poetry rings with similar intensity to that which was heard on 1994’s The Diary album: “Because we live in a do or die society/you do or either die trying, or do it psychologically/I’m brain-dead and I don’t give a f**k, that’s my excuse/and I don’t need an audience around for me to let loose”.
Scarface exercises his veteran status to deliver some grown man talk on Who Do You Believe In. The track finds him questioning the actions and motives of the current generation, while also defending himself to those who view him and his contemporaries as role models for the corrupted minds of the youth: “The old folks is mad at us, cause their kids is lost/how do you expect us to teach, when all you did was taught”.
While 'Face’s gift for attention-grabbing narratives is at the forefront, the rich big budget production sensibilities used throughout also help make it one of his most sonically polished releases. Unfortunately there are some production mis-steps that affect the continuity and consistency established throughout Made. Bigg Dogg Status, featuring New Orleans up and comer Wacko, sounds a little like a half-hearted attempt to keep up with the current style popularised by many of today’s Southern artists. Coming from say Slim Thug or even Chamillionaire, it wouldn’t sound so out-of-place. Dollar is in a similar vein, however neither of these tracks are awful by any means and are saved by 'Face’s lyricism.
As with the majority of his albums, the leader of the Face Mob finds time to adapt his storytelling approach to discuss hood romances and complex relationships.
Maintaining a pace similar to his classic cut Mary Jane, Tanya Herron lends her talents to Boy Meets Girl, a tragic tale of downtrodden people striving for betterment no matter how flawed or illegal the means are, wrapped around an irresistibly soulful groove. The suitably radio-friendly bounce of Girl You Know finds the Southern pioneer getting into pimp mode, contemplating the scenario of settling down with the same woman for the rest of his life, as they both struggle to deal with each other’s past demons.
While it is a shame that his recorded career is coming to a close, luckily he had the wherewithal to leave when he was creatively still on top, with Made going down as one of his finest achievements.
Available Through Asylum/Rap-A-Lot Records
